The city of Bowling Green is taking applications for grants for community groups looking to improve their neighborhoods.

Select Neighborhood Action Program guidelines and applications are available on the city’s website with an application deadline of July 15.

The city allotted $40,000 in SNAP grants for the next fiscal year starting in July.

The grants are given to groups looking to improve their communities – typical grant requests are for things such as signage, landscaping, beautification projects, professional services and capital purchases.

A SNAP grant awarded last year has had a positive impact at Lost River Elementary School, according to Assistant Principal Steve Sanders.

The Pine Grove Homeowner’s Association used a $5,000 grant to do weeding and landscaping at the school and playground.

“It was tremendous. As a school system, we can’t always afford things like mulch. This was another source of funding and labor. Our maintenance department is tremendous, but it’s difficult for them” to tackle extra projects, he said. Neighborhood children use the playground when school is not in session, so the project was “a great collaboration with the neighborhood and a win-win for everybody,” he said.

The $40,000 in SNAP grants offered this year is up from $25,000 offered in recent years as the funding was decreased during the recession. The amount has fluctuated and was as much as $50,000 per year when the program started in 1999, according to Karen Foley, the city’s neighborhood services coordinator.

“It’s not been fully restored, but we are glad to have it,” she said. “The goal is to maximize that spending.”

Typically, the city has gotten 10 to 15 applications per year for SNAP grants, Foley said.

Grants are capped at $5,000, and groups that previously received funding are eligible for grants of smaller amounts. Any unused SNAP money gets rolled over to the following year. Last year, the city commission distributed $35,255 to 14 neighborhood and community organizations in grants.

“Every year is different because the projects are different,” Foley said.

Eligibility requirements include a required training session and the organization requesting the funding must be in the city limits. Funding decisions are made by a review panel that takes into consideration application completeness, neighborhood participation, community benefit and project quality.

Full guidelines and application forms are available at http://www2.bgky.org/neighborhoods/nhgrants.php#snapforms.

— Follow city government reporter Wes Swietek on Twitter @BGDNgovtbeat or visit bgdailynews.com.